For the first time since the Vietnam War, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier is
paying a visit to a Vietnamese port, seeking to bolster both countries’ efforts
to stem expansionism by China in the South China Sea.

The U.S. Navy will kick off its largest multilateral disaster-response
preparedness mission conducted in the Indo-Pacific region on Feb. 23, with a
U.S. Navy aircraft carrier scheduled to visit Vietnam in early March.

The U.S. Navy plans to conduct another passage near disputed islands in the
East Vietnam Sea in early April, a source familiar with the plan said on
Friday, the third in series of challenges that have drawn sharps rebukes from
China.

The U.S. Navy's hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) and joint high-speed
vessel USNS Millinocket (JHSV 3) arrived at Tien Sa Port in the central
Vietnamese city of Da Nang on Monday for a 12-day working visit.

Two US Navy ships Friday practiced new rules for maritime conduct with
Vietnamese naval forces in the East Sea the Vietnamese term for the South
China Sea to ensure safe communication when they meet again.

A Vietnamese fishing boat captain said his vessel was attacked this month by
the crew of a Chinese law enforcement ship near the disputed Paracel islands,
risking a fresh escalation in tensions in the South China Sea.

Russia and Vietnam will build a repair and maintenance facility for ships
built by the Soviet Union and Russia in Cam Ranh Bay, where one of the most
important naval bases of the USSR abroad used to be located.